John Saunders, veteran ESPN broadcaster, dies at 61

"John was an extraordinary talent and his friendly, informative style has been a warm welcome to sports fans for decades," said ESPN president John Skipper in a statement.

"He was one of the most significant and influential members of the ESPN family, as a colleague and mentor, and he will be sorely missed. Our thoughts are with his loved ones at this extremely difficult time."

Saunders was born in Canada where he grew up playing hockey, which eventually earned him a scholarship to play at Western Michigan University.

The broadcaster joined ESPN in 1986 to anchor SportsCenter. He was also the host of "The Sports Reporters." Throughout his career he would go on to become the voice of college basketball and the WNBA, as well as the MLB All-Star game and World Series. He hosted the Stanley Cup playoffs between 1993 and 2004 on ESPN.

Outside of his broadcasting career, Saunders was a founding member of the V Foundation for Cancer and also served on the board of directors.